Idle Comments About Today's Director's Cut -- July, 2016, Production Data -- September 16, 2016

North Dakota actually showed a slight increase in crude oil production in today's production report, for July, 2016:

• July, 2016: 1,029,507 bopd
• June, 2016: 1,027,131 bopd

North Dakota went above the 1.03 million bopd threshhold a little over two years ago, in April/May, 2014.

Operators completed 169 wells in the month of April, 2014, and a similar number in May, 2014. In contrast, only 49 wells came off the confidential list in July, 2016 (the most recent report) and most of them were drilled to depth but not completed. According to the NDIC, only 41 wells were completed in July, 2016 (the most recent report) but most of these were older wells that had already been drilled, and were finally fracked).

Think about that for a minute. In May, 2014, crude oil production went over 1.03 million bopd for the first time and it was a time when upwards of 175 wells or more were being drilled to depth and completed. Today. North Dakota continues to produce that same amount of oil, and is only drilling 40 wells or so and completing about the same number (some new wells; mostly older DUCs -- the state now gives operators two years to complete a well after it has been spud.

This was North Dakota's crude oil production data for May, 2014:

Oil:

• May, 2014: 1,039,635 bopd (preliminary; new all-time high)
• April, 2014: 1,003,256 bopd (revised; first month to go over 1 million bopd) 
• April, 2014: 1,001,149 bopd (original)
  
• delta: 36,379 bopd
• 36,379 / 1,003,256 = 3.6% (fairly significant)

Producing wells:

• May, 2014:  10,892 (new all-time high)
• April, 2014: 10,665

Pricing:

• June, 2014: $90.02
• May, 2014: $88.31

Rig count:

• June, 2014: 190
• May, 2014: 189